#2219 The facts of life

What's in Store at Pilgrim Surf + Supply. Photo: Noah Emrich

1. I witnessed carefree parenting at its best yesterday at the Thompson Hotel pool. We were there shooting the pilot for a new TV show (more on that later) and this six year old boy kept running round and round the pool, jumping in dangerously close to the concrete edge, and desperately trying to gain his mother's attention as she sipped gin and tonics with a friend on the orange deck chairs. One of the waiters approached the woman on multiple occasions, asking her to keep an eye on her son so he wouldn't hurt himself, and each time she laughed and said he'd be fine. Getting worried, the waiter approached the little boy and tried to explain why he shouldn't jump in so close to the edge. The message was clearly misunderstood. A couple of minutes later, the boy jumped and landed straight on the edge of the pool, badly grazing the left side of his torso. A lifeguard dove in to fish him out. When he was taken to his mother, she patted him on the head and said, "Don't worry, you're fine!" The boy attempted to tell her how badly it hurt, pointing at his bleeding ribs through his sobs. She gave him a stern look. "Use your Mandarin words." He repeated it in Mandarin. "Much better!" she said. The last time I saw him, he was being led away to the First Aid room by the lifeguard as his mother continued sipping her drink and talking to her friend. What's the bet he ends up CEO of some fortune 500 company? (Probably Apple.) Nobody ever got anywhere by being mollycoddled.

2. My latest What's in Store just went up on the New York Times site! Noah and I shot it at Pilgrim Surf + Supply right here in Williamsburg. Check it out.

3. Little Brother's first collaboration is launching this summer, in the form of a sweet piece that'll be perfect for boys and girls alike. Our co-collaborator is a very familiar face – hint: She is Awesome. Here's a sneak pic we just put up on the LB Tumblr (which you should be following).

4. I haven't read The Four Agreements, but everyone keeps quoting it to me, so I'm going to buy it today. It's very simple: 1. Be impeccable with your word. 2. Don’t take anything personally. 3. Don’t make assumptions. 4. Always do your best.

5. I'm going to write about this topic in depth at a later date, but it's has been on my mind a lot recently. I used to watch Entourage and feel jealous of the dream lifestyle those guys live: Hanging out with the boys, going to parties, never having to work and basically doing nothing all day every day. The last few weeks of my life have been exactly that due to a lull period in work, and take it from me – there is nothing to be gained from living an unproductive life. Nothing! Yesterday I put in a solid 11 hours worth of work and felt happier than I have in a long time. Don't envy the idle.

6. I finally got around to watching the Moonrise Kingdom trailer last night and it appears to be everything I've ever wanted to see, all wrapped up into a tidy little cinematic package. Going to see it tonight, cannot fricken wait.

7. "If Superman is, at heart, a power fantasy – a puny nerd who can secretly kick sand in bullies’ faces – Batman is all about cool. Or rather, a child’s idea of cool: the man with the most money and the biggest house and the best hide-out and the fastest car, chased by the prettiest girls. That is why he strikes such a chord today. Other heroes – such as Spider-Man or the X-Men – may be marginalised loners. But, as Morrison says, it’s no coincidence that 'in a world where wealth and celebrity are the measures of accomplishment… the most popular superhero characters today – Batman and Iron Man – are both handsome tycoons'." Is Batman secretly the ultimate capitalist superhero brought to life for the sole purpose of protecting the privileged from those dirty ingrates otherwise known as the poor? Find out, here.

8. I'm blogging live from Toby's Estate again today, and they're playing Bright Eyes, so my song of the week is Lua. Listen to it immediately.

9. But because Frank Ocean is the man of the moment, if you haven't already, take a listen to Thinking About You. God damn it's good. And it reminds me of this, which is one of the greatest Youtube clips of all time.

10. Katherine Lowe thinks she is gangsta. To prove her inner thug-ness, she posted a video of her rapping to Nicki Minaj. I think I am way more gangsta than her, so coming up later this week, I'm going to rap some Nicki Minaj of my own. Don't get scurred.

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